South Carolina High School Teacher Resigns Following Viral Video Showing Her Pulling Student’s Hair

“It was all in fun.”

A video posted on social media this week shows a white female high school teacher standing on a desk, attempting to wake up a black male student by pulling on his dreads, stepping on his shoulder, and patting his cheeks. Classmates can be heard laughing as math teacher Lisa Houston — a 27-year veteran at Palmetto High School in South Carolina — stands over the student and taps on his desk with her feet, telling him "wake up!" The student that recorded the video has the caption "Boy you better get up" and two laughing emojis.

Houston has now resigned after the video went viral, prompting major backlash. Houston's attorney, however, Ryan Beasley says his client was forced to resign or would ultimately be fired by the school district, the Independent Mail reports.

Assistant superintendent for Anderson School District 1, Jane Harrison, said in a written statement, according to Greenville News, "The district wishes our community to know that the school administration immediately conducted an inquiry into what occurred. The individual has already separated as an Anderson 1 teacher. Although the district is unable to comment in detail about the matter, the administration took seriously what occurred, and the teacher, who has had an exemplary record of teaching performance, decided of her own accord that she would retire in the best interest of her school."

In an interview with WYFF4, Houston said she understands how the video comes across, but insists there's more to the story.

"If you ask any kid I've taught, they'll tell you I kid around with them, make them stay awake and laugh with them," Houston told local NBC affiliate WYFF News 4. "I know the video looks bad. If you don't know the situation, you don't know what's going on, but it was not a malicious act. It was all in fun. I want the public to know that I love the student, and that our rapport with each other was great. I would have never done anything to hurt him."

Houston's resignation has caused students, alumni, and the community in Williamston, South Carolina, to advocate for the district to rehire her. On May 4, people in Williamston held a rally showing their anger over her resignation.

A petition has also launched in support of Houston, which includes more than a thousand supporters.

"Lisa Houston was wrongly accused of 'hurting' and 'mistreating' a student, when all she was trying to do was have fun, wake him up, and make him LEARN," the petition states. "ASD1 should have taken a stand behind her, and they didn’t. She deserves her job back, more than anyone else."

Vice chairman of the Anderson School District 1, and former Palmetto High School principal, Doug Atkins, has also resigned in protest of how his district handled the matter.

"I just don't want to be associated with this kind of action," Atkins said, according to the Independent Mail. "She was a good teacher, one of the best teachers the district has, with an excellent record. I hired her myself and know what kind of person she is. The administration reacted in haste."

Teen Vogue has reached out to Houston and the school district for comment.